AI Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to assess whether using the Compare Assistant tool improves the reliability of muscle thickness measurements via ultrasound, considering technician experience and the muscle being measured.
- Participants underwent ultrasound muscle imaging on two separate days, with images taken by both inexperienced and experienced technicians, using different techniques on the second day.
- Results indicated that using Compare Assistant did not enhance the reliability of measurements for either upper or lower body muscles, suggesting that variability in muscle thickness may stem more from biological factors rather than technician inconsistencies.
Article Abstract
Purpose: Muscle thickness measured via ultrasound is commonly used to assess muscle size. The purpose of this study was to determine if the reliability of this measurement will improve if using the Compare Assistant tool, and whether this depends on technician experience and the muscle being assessed.
Methods: Individuals came to the laboratory for two visits each separated by 24 h. On day 1, two ultrasound images were taken on the individual's anterior upper arm (elbow flexors) and anterior lower leg (tibialis anterior) by two inexperienced and one experienced ultrasound technician. On day 2, three images were taken: (1) without looking at the previous images taken on day 1; (2) after re-examining the images taken on day 1, and (3) side-by-side with the images taken on day 1 via Compare Assistant. Bayes Factors (BF) were used to provide evidence for the null (< 0.33) or alternative (> 3) hypotheses.
Results: There was no rater by measurement technique interaction (upper body: BF = 0.04, lower body: BF = 0.138), nor was there a main effect of measurement technique (upper body: BF = 0.052, lower body: BF = 0.331), indicating that reliability measures were not improved for either the upper body (CV%, no look: 2.92 vs. Compare Assistant: 2.87) or lower body (CV%, no look: 1.81 vs. Compare Assistant: 1.34) as a result of using Compare Assistant.
Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that day-to-day reliability of muscle thickness measurement may be limited by random biological variability as opposed to technician error.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10396-023-01367-y | DOI Listing |
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